These verses are the basis of what practical living looks like for a Christian. They give insight to what love looks like in the life of a Christian.
Share with the Lord’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality. Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. Live in harmony with one another. (Romans 12:13-16)
Key thought in these verses: Generosity.
4 Commitments to help you get along with others:
We will be generous with our resources
“Share with the Lord’s people who are in need” (vs.13). Share means to be generous (Galatians 6:10).
Christians look out for each other.
We cannot do this with our eyes only on ourselves. Sharing can only be present when selfishness, envy, and self-pity has stopped.
3 things this entails:
a) eyes to see
b) a willingness to part with what one has (Matthew 25:21)
c) you must be okay with less
We will be generous with our time
Practice hospitality (vs. 13). Practice means you try and try again. Hospitality is towards people we don’t know well.
Our hospitality always points people to God (Matthew 5:14-16).
We will be generous with our words
Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse (vs. 14).
Bless means to pray for those you find difficult. Seek the good of those who are tough to get along with.
Be generous with your words towards others who are less than generous with their words towards you.
Do not curse means don’t talk cheap or bad about others.
Jesus said the same thing in Matthew 5:44.
We will be generous with our actions
Rejoice with those who rejoice, mourn with those who mourn. Live in harmony with one another (vs. 15-16).
Develop sympathy for others. Come alongside others in both the good and bad times.
It’s harder to be happy for someone than it is to feel sorry for someone. When someone is happy over something, envy can be present inside of us.
Don’t make this about you. It’s about others.
The older brother in the story of the Prodigal Son teaches us how detrimental it can be to harbor bitterness or envy (Luke 15:28-31).
During times of mourning our actions speak more than our words ever can. It’s not about what you say, rather about what you do in those moments.
Pick one area of generosity (resources, time, words, actions) in which you can grow in this coming week. One area where you would say, “I will commit to building this aspect of generosity in my life.” Pray about it and be ready for the doors God will open.
These verses are the basis of what practical living for a Christian looks like. They are the orthopraxy (right conduct) to the Christian life. They give us clarity to what Paul meant when he said, “cling to what is good”. (Romans 12:9)
Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.
(Romans 12:12)
Three things to help you survive Covid:
BE JOYFUL IN HOPE
Joy is more than feeling good after getting what you want or succeeding at something when you try. Joy is a state of mind; an orientation of the heart. It’s a resolved place of contentment, confidence and hope.
When we are joyful in hope we realize our joy is not about circumstance as much as it is about where our faith lies. (James 1:2-4; Acts 16:22-25)
BE PATIENT IN AFFLICTION
Affliction refers to deep and serious trouble. It’s the state of carrying pain.
Patient means to persevere, to endure, to keep on. (James 1:2-4)
Stick to your faith through the difficult times.
Learn and develop endurance so that we may be mature and grow in our faith.
Christians make it through – Christians endure. (Romans 5:3-4)
BE FAITHFUL IN PRAYER
Faithful denotes two things: consistency and the effort needed to maintain a habit of prayer.
This isn’t optional for the Christian. This is something we need to work at and put the effort into.
Hebrews 4:16; 1 John 5:15; James 5:16
ACTS model of prayer (Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, Supplication)
These verses are the basis of what practical living for a Christian looks like. They are the orthopraxy (right conduct) to the Christian life. They give us clarity to what Paul meant when he said, “cling to what is good”. (Romans 12:9)
Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. (Romans 12:11)
1. Never be lacking in zeal
The opposite of never is always. Paul is saying zeal must be an enduring quality in our life.
Zeal has two outcomes:
Diligence. Getting things done. A stick-to-itiveness. Don’t coast through life. Don’t put your life in neutral. Don’t coast in your faith. (1 Corinthians 15:58; Revelation 3:15-16)
The ability to get worked up about something that needs changing.
What kind of things work you up? Trivial things or things that matter?
2. But keep your spiritual fervor
The word “keep” implies that we can lose our Christian pursuit.
Spiritual fervor directly translated from the Greek means: “with respect to the Spirit boiling over”. Paul is saying, have so much of the Spirit moving and working in your life that He is overflowing from within you. (Galatians 5:22-23; Acts 1:4-5,8)
4 Things the Holy Spirit brings into our lives:
The ability to talk about Christ boldly. (1 Corinthians 2:4-5)
Help when we are weak. (Romans 8:26)
Hope in a hopeless world. (Romans 15:13)
He helps us to experience the fullness of God. (Ephesians 3:16-19)
3. Serving the Lord
This is where we put our focus. What the spiritual fervor and passion is for.
This involves being motivated to do what you need to do in making your Christian life work. It involves effort.
This is making God your end goal in all that you do. It is serving God with all you’ve got.
We all value something. Values are the guiding principles that steer our life. They are the core ethics and principles that are the desired end state for how we want to live our life.
What do you value?
VALUE FOUR: PEOPLE FIRST
We choose to invest in the potential God has placed in others. This is helping people develop into passionate, stable Christ followers. (1 Corinthians 10:24)
This is about deference. It is about respect for others. (Romans 14:1-7)
How are you at helping others succeed?
What lift can you bring to someone today?
Hope is one of the greatest things we can bring into people’s lives. (1 Peter 1:3-4’ Psalm 39:7). We need to distinguish between optimism and hope.
VALUE FIVE: UNITY
We choose a culture of peace by getting along, showing respect and presuming the best of each other.
3 aspects about unity:
Unity is a choice – Romans 14:19
Unity begins in the mind – 1 Corinthians 1:10
Unity is intentional – Ephesiasn 4:1-2
VALUE SIX: TALK AND TELL
We seize every opportunity to talk and tell about Christ and what He’s done in our lives. (1 Peter 3:15)
You are a walking billboard for Jesus and what He can do in someone’s life.
Do you have a “let me in there” mentality? (Acts 21:13)
VALUE SEVEN: FUTURE ORIENTED
We can’t stay here. You can’t stay here.
This value screams, “God always has a next for you.”
Isaiah 43:18-19; 2 Corinthians 5:17
What you value matters. How you steer your life matters. May you be known for living out values that matter. May you be someone who lives for things beyond the temporal. May you honestly say these are values I want to live by.
Click HERE to get a digital copy of our “7 Values To Live By.”
We all value something. Values are the guiding principles that steer our life. They are the core ethics and principles that are the desired end state for how we want to live our life.
What do you value most?
VALUE 1: PASSIONATE
We are passionate about our relationship with Christ and what He is doing in others.
What are you most passionate about?
Isaiah 26:9; Psalm 73:25; Psalm 42:2; Psalm 63:1
One of the greatest values you can set for your life is your constant and continuous passion for God.
Most of us are good at “God I need you”, but we’re not so good at “God I want you”.
Two things about passion:
It’s a pursuit – It’s a daily thing experienced in daily ways through daily motivation.
It takes work – It doesn’t just happen. (Psalm 25:15)
VALUE 2: TRY HARD
We do our best to make it look like we tried. We believe God uses and honours our best efforts to make a difference.
You have been gifted by God and you can either bury that talent or expound it 10-fold. Try hard says I will use what I’ve been given to make a difference. (Colossians 3:23)
It’s recognizing our effort is a form of worship to God. So in our workplace, we step up; in our spiritual life we are determined; in our physical health we are motivated; in our relationships, we are engaged.
VALUE 3: LEAN IN
We do whatever it takes to accomplish shared vision and goals.
This value reminds us we don’t live life in a silo. It reminds us that there is more to life than me, myself and I.
It pushes us to stop and help, stop and listen, stop and engage.
This value costs the most expensive thing we own: love and time.
Hebrews 13:16; Philippians 2:4
You don’t grow without intention. You don’t further yourself without a guide. I’m whispering in your ear, “let’s do this!”.
QUESTIONS:
What value is going well for you?
Which one do you need to implement in a greater way?
